I was waiting for a nice sunny day in Vancouver as I wanted to get out to photograph Siwash Rock. This basalt stack is the only one of it’s kind in the Vancouver area, and I wanted to catch it when high tide was at or near sunset. This is an HDR image created from several exposures. And a shot I took with my iPhone 4S as my D800 was taking the 7 bracketed shots for my HDR above. And a few more shots from that evening including some fun with a neutral density filter for longer...

Last weekend, my wife and I paid a visit to the UBC Botanical Garden and Centre for Plant Research (at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver). Despite having lived in Vancouver a combined 35 years it was the first visit for both of us. We were very fortunate because one of the volunteers, Dana, took us for a private tour as no one else was there for a tour when we arrived. He spent several hours with us, taking us first on the Greenheart Canopy Walkway, which is a series of bridges and platforms in the trees. It’s a bit wobbly, but fun at the same time. Also, you get an interesting view from up there that you...

Took a short walk with my dogs on Acadia Beach today. The best time for birds, especially Great Blue Herons, seems to be on the rising tide early in the morning. The Herons like to walk around in the shallow water and pick off smelt and other small fish who are too dumb to notice a three foot tall bird. I didn’t get any stellar shots today but did see a Bald Eagle, a few Great Blue Herons, Geese, and a few of the usual suspects as well. Overall, a fun day and always nice when an eagle is around. The birds were quite far away so these are crops from much bigger images shot with the Nikon D800 and 80-200 f/2.8D lens. In cases like...

Some shots from the 2012 Vancouver RioTinto Alcan Dragon Boat Festival. Saturday, June 16th was an absolutely miserable day with solid rain all day. I didn’t even go down to the event as sitting in the rain watching is not much fun. Sunday was much nicer, and I did get out to watch the racing and take a few photos. Heading out to race Racing One of the racers, a dragon boat team, and me. Concord Pacific Flying Dragons One and Too (processed in the style of “300”) The Gong Show that is the Guts and Glory race. 16 teams race 4 legs of 500m, which means they need to make a three turns. These boats, with 22...

My friend Eli and I attended the Fifth Annual East Van Show and Shine held at the Whip Restaurant. It is a fundraiser that features live bands, a barbecue, local vendors, and vintage and classic cars, trucks, and motorcycles. Proceeds support the Canadian Cancer Society. We have attended the event for the last few years and it’s always fun. There were a few new cars this year, including a late 60’s Charger and a late 60’s Camaro which are both near the top of my favorites list. On our way out of the house, Eli noticed a rainbow around the sun. More info about this in my previous post, but it was very cool and not a...

Yesterday, on my way to the East Van Show and Shine, my friend Eli pointed out a circular rainbow around the sun. Not something you see every day, and since we both had our cameras we took some photos. Someone suggested that this phenomenon is called a sun dog or sundog (Wikipedia), but I think it is actually a sun halo. A sun dog is a ‘mock sun’, or a bright point of light similar to the sun. I this case, it’s a complete circular halo around the sun and looks like a rainbow. There are some references to these things here and here. Update (May 29): After posting on a forum, it turns out this phenomenon is called a...

Another trip to Vancouver Animal Control to photograph dogs. Photos from previous visits can be seen here. As always, you can see the animals available for adoption from this shelter by visiting their PetFinder page or just drop in at the shelter. First up, this young pit bull who is a bit chunky but loves to play. I had to visit the puppies again, they are great dogs and won’t last long. Previous photos of these little guys are here. A playful and very cute Pomeranian. Call of the wild And a German Shepherd who was more interested in napping in the grass than having her photo taken. ...

I have had a membership at the Vancouver Aquarium for the last few years and I like to visit often. It’s a great place to just walk around and relax. I almost always see something new and different. I like to bring my camera, you never know what you will see. Don’t bug me, I’m crabby Best buds, Gus and Ollie, hyacinth...